


Leaving the Nest

by Shulk



Category: Xenoblade Chronicles
Genre: Gen, meliora is there but only bc i have a disease
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-24
Updated: 2020-09-24
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:06:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26626438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shulk/pseuds/Shulk
Summary: i don't know how to summarize this, kallian is big brother moments i guess yeehaw???? there's no beta bc im a loser with nobody to read this
Kudos: 15





	Leaving the Nest

It is established tradition for all High Entian emperors to take two consorts. Kallian, son of the first consort never understood why his father would choose another woman, much less a Homs. When Sorean introduced the young prince to the second consort, his mother cautioned him. Never trust a Homs, she rasped. A child could not understand why she would say utter a thing, but he knew very well that all good sons listened to their mother. So Kallian followed suit, and stayed away from the second consort.

When the second consort was said to be expecting, Kallian braced himself for Yumea's anger. He hesitated to even greet her when she storms into their villa, but the trained formalities overrides his sense. His mother ignores him, and Kallian knows she has heard the news. Yumea had never been particularly warm, yet the subtle change in her demeanour did not escape her son. Ever since the announcement of the second consort, the crown prince had more than just Yumea's volatile temperament to quell. He wonders why she sees a low life Homs as a threat, but does not question her.

When the child is born, Kallian is only 63. His mother teaches him to hate her,, yet one glimpse of the small featherless newborn unweaves her web of deception. The child is vulnerable and helpless, with feeble naked wings bared for all to see. Sorean proudly presents her to the royal guard, then hands her over to the prince. Kallian has never seen a half homs before, and curiosity overtakes him. Are all half homs born this way? Her wings are unusually small, and he has never seen a featherless High Entia. And where he expected contempt to blossom in his heart, only warmth spread. She is... Cute, he decides. He does not understand why his mother looks at her with that classic barely disguised contempt, but he knows that she is merely a child, just like him. The baby burrows into him, and Kallian can't help but laugh. She reminds him of the young Nopon that roams the capital, always ready to embrace the closest heat source.

"Her name is Melia." Sorean announces, and a rare proud smile decorates his face. Yumea feigns joy, but her smile does not reach her eyes. Kallian feels a familiar discomfort crawl under his skin, and his mind begins to wander. He hopes mother does not berate him at home, and distracts himself with Melia's gentle breathing. He can deal with her later he decides. Her temper never reaches the surface in public, and just once, the young boy would like some comfort in these otherwise stiff supposed familial meetings.

Despite his mother's scathing comments, the boy decides to visit the second consort on his own. There is nothing but cordial friendliness between them, and he would never betray his mother. Yet Melia, his sister, fascinates him. The second consort beams, and is more than willing to allow Kallian to spend time with her daughter. Soon visits like this would become routine, and the frigid armour Yumea adorned him in began to melt. Perhaps he did betray his mother some time ago, but he is beyond caring. He does not understand his mother, but he was beyond caring. Her words sting like an open wound, but the boy has found it to be no more of an annoyance. His connection to his father flourishes, and he spends more time with the second consort than his birth mother.

As Melia grows, so do her feathers. She is nowhere near her adult set, yet Kallian chest fills with pride as she presents her first feather to him. Melia's mother beams, and Kallian feels a sense of kinship with the Homs. When that feather falls from its wing, the second consort is quick to fashion a bracelet, attaching the first of many fallen feathers to it. Perhaps it is her nature as a Homs to be so sentimental, or maybe it's Yumea's cold parenting that lingers on Kallian. The second consort treats him as she treats her precious daughter, despite Kallian's initial distance. It is through her and Melia that the boy understands what family is meant to be. Sorean too feels a warmth he could never kindle with Yumea, and for once Kallian does not admonish it. Though Yumea lingers in the shadow of his mind, the prince has long banished any feeling of loyalty to her.

The wings of the High Entia serve more than just visual purpose. It is through their feathers they regulate ether, and any High Entia knows clean feathers means good hygiene. When Melia's downy feathers stick to her wings, her mother gently preens them as all High Entia mothers would do. Kallian too receives her preening, something Yumea stopped doing for him the moment she could. She is Homs, yet it is soothing all the same. As her bracelet collects feathers, the wrinkles around her face accumulates, and her hair slowly turns the same silver of the High Entia. Melia marvels at it, not understanding what is to come. The prince knows her time is coming, and every passing year fills the boy with dread. The second consort simply smiles when he addresses it, and Melia remains naive. Her adult feathers have finally begun to come in, but she still remains quite young. She is only 47, and has just begun her education. Death is a subject they have only briefly addressed.

The girl is only 53 when the second consort passes. She does not die with a storm, and her decline is slow. Age catches up to her, slowly burning her away until one day, she does not awaken. The princess weeps for days, and Kallian mourns her as well. He remembers his immature contempt for her, and feels regret burn in his throat. The second consort is not his mother, but she was more of a mother than Yumea ever was to him.

  
To no one's surprise, Melia begins to perform poorly in her studies. She is deeply distracted, and her feathers remain in disarray. Her brother maintains a safe distance, as he has no experience dealing with death. It is his first time dealing with death, and as a brother he knows he should do something, yet he cannot figure out what. There is nothing he can do to return the second consort to her, and he cannot take her place. They share their grief but speak no words. Melia is the most shaken by it all, and begins to retreat into herself. Yumea scoffs at their grief, and through his tears, Kallian meets her gaze with a ferocity that takes her aback. It is at this point, Kallian has decided she is no longer his family, and his loyalty lies in Melia. 

The prince takes to preening the young girl's feathers. Melia does not notice it at first, and it comes natural to Kallian. He keeps the second consort's bracelet with him, and continues to adorn it with the girl's feathers. His fingers gently pluck the matted feathers, and he weaves through her tiny wings like a seamstress. The girl begins to pick herself back up from the loss of her mother, and Kallian too begins to move on. The two have become inseparable, and their father knows the second consort passed away without a struggle knowing that Melia would be well taken care of. Life resumes as normal, and Melia begins her flight into a young woman. Kallian too has matured greatly. The absence of the first consort is hardly recognizable to the two. They have eachother, and their beloved father. And though Sorean cannot express his pride, deep down the two know they are deeply loved by their surviving parent. High Entia politics are fickle, and the emperor cannot show bias. His heart wars with his head, and opposition like Yumea exist to fuel the flames of spite. Despite it all, Kallian remains steadfast to his sister.

When the prince learns of his fate, the world begins to spiral. His heart shatters, and he knows he cannot be with Melia when her destiny arises. Knowing the truth of the system of the second consort leaves him feeling as if his wings had been severed. He will never be able to guide the future empress, for the very Bionis that gave them life would rob it all away. Melia has no one but him, and he faces the same dilemma the second consort had. He will not rest knowing Melia will be alone in the world, with no one to love and nurture her. She is too young to fly, and yet destiny demands she leaps anyways. The girl will be alone, and he will be her adversary as another crazed beast. That is what destiny has written out for them. He tries to escape his fate, and begs his father for answers. Father too harbours this despair, but he has had many years to come to terms with his fate. Death does not scare Kallian, yet leaving his precious sister behind fills him with an emotion beyond mere fear. As Melia conquers the trials of adulthood, Kallian knows his time draws ever sooner. He cherishes every moment he can with his precious sister, but the girl will have no one to turn to when he turns. When father sends her on a quest with her guards however, the man is pleasantly surprised to see the cogs of destiny have been somewhat merciful. She brings with her Homs and a Nopon, who Kallian understands immediately that they are what he's been looking for. They are companions and friends, something Melia has long needed. He takes notice of his sister's travels, and the unusual detail that Melia's feathers are well groomed despite the lack of kin amidst her new flock. When the princess is among her friends, Kallian notices the boy, Shulk, has taken to preening her feathers. He lacks the finesse that comes with experience, but nevertheless the impression of trust remains the same. The prince notices he's not the only one either. The burly Homs is surprisingly gentle and precise with how he puts her feathers back into place. The Nopon doesn't do the neatest job, yet a father's love is evident in his craftsmanship. The healer is the neatest, and her motions are the most deliberate. The hero is clumsy with his one arm, but he still tries in spite of his disability. Though Kallian's own technique has decades of experience behind it, each of her new friends carries their own unique charm.

Father told him that he knew his time was coming. Impaled on the claws of a metallic monster, he falls, and Melia falls apart once more. Blood seeps from Sorean's chest, and he clings to what strength he has left. He shares his last words with his dear daughter, and the two share a final warm embrace as Sorean grows cold as the Valak Mountain winds. Yet another parent taken away too early from the siblings. But this time, Melia has her friends to lean on, and the prince is ever so grateful. Though she is listless, her friends piece her back together as stained glass. She is not the same, and has a rougher, sharper edge to her. Her feathers are clean and well maintained this time. She carries herself with grace, and though she has suffered, she does not back down. Her new companions serve as a foundation to her strength, and her devotion is clear. She does not need protection anymore.

As they journey, Melia changes even more. Her dreary feathers fall, and in their place comes brilliant white ones. She meets a girl, with a body of the enemy. Her motions are rough, and she seems to be as energetic as Reyn. However her gestures towards Melia are delicate, as if Melia is glass. It seems the rough silver armour doesn't translate to her demeanour at all. Kallian wonders, if maybe she is glass. She is frail, and so young. She is far from ready to be ripped away from her flock, but destiny does not wait. The Mechon girl gently weaves Melia's feathers, and caresses her soft face. The gesture does not go unnoticed by the prince, and the rosy hue scattered across Melia's plump cheeks tells the entire tale. There's a sense of pride in Kallian's chest, and he knows that when he is gone, his precious sister will be in good hands. Before she leaves hands his sweet little sister the bracelet of feathers their mother crafted long ago, and a keepsake of their father. "You are an adult, sister. This is now yours, as it was once your mother's. And as an empress, father passes his staff to you." He rasps before she leaves. Melia bows with grace and accepts both parental heirlooms. "Thank you brother. I will not disappoint you." She responds with a newfound resolve. As she scurries to her companions, Kallian's wings lighten with fondness. She was on her way to blooming into a true empress.

Melia does not let herself become corrupted by vengeance, and she eagerly offers her strength to the Machina. Though she will never forgive the man who killed her father, she does not let it rule her heart. She is still flawed, but no one is without flaws. Her exterior reminds Kallian a bit of himself when he was younger, but the frost does not impede any sense or honour. She is not obligated to forgive the man who killed her father, and neither is Kallian. Kallian knows deep down, Sorean would have died some other way, yet his heart grapples with the struggle to accept that he will never have his vengeance. Kallian takes to the frontlines of the second war against the Mechon, hand in hand with the Homs his mother told him to never trust. He channels his grief in his own way, and directs his rage at the leader of Mechonis. The two siblings no longer wallow in grief or bitterness. This grief that defined them now forges a path. Productive use of the heart's turmoil changes then both, and the two grow strong. Kallian does not quite realize it himself, but Melia has the strength to stand on her own. He does not see her drive in person, but when he learns of it, he knows he will accept the end of their time together with grace. 

When his time comes, it happens all too fast. He had hoped he would have died on the frontlines, and die as himself, but the passage of fate was never fair. It is amidst the end of one war, another begins. The leader of the ministry of research spits venom, and ether crawls from beneath their aircrafts. The prince's chest clenches, and he gasps for air. His eyesight blurs, and golden splotches dance in his vision. He struggles for air, and his body convulses. Though he knows he will not die, he is positive this is the death of his self. He chokes out, but destiny ensnares him in a green aura. His comrades have already been reborn into the mindless killing machines the Bionis decreed as their ultimate fate. Yet he struggles, all while knowing that he cannot escape. Melia's screams pierce his ears, and his very soul is howling. Lorithia looks on bemused, and the prince's body is no longer his own. Aquamarine scales litter his body, and the Bionis grants him a serpentine form. Struggling only delays the inevitable, but Kallian isn't ready to leave Melia behind. His muscles feel as if they've been tossed into an inferno, and one thought remains clear. He will not bear his fangs on his beloved sister. He turns, and Melia shouts again, confused as to what he is doing. Dickson laughs at their plight, but quickly his grin contorts into stark fear. The will of the Bionis does not define him, and in his last moments, he channels everything his newfound body has while he still has control. Lorithia shrieks, and Dickson scrambles for his gun. The newborn Telethia does not feel the bullets, and if he could, the pain of the transformation would outweigh it. As lights scatter across the cruel night sky, the Telethia collides with his supposed master, having made one final act of defiance in the face of destiny. A burst of light erupts from the concentrated ether, and there is no Kallian to be seen. Melia races to the explosion, but Reyn and Dunban are faster. The duo react first, and swoop in to pull her back from the tragedy.

Its insides still burn even after the collision. Everything blurs, and the Telethia can hardly distinguish left from right. It howls and struggles with defiance that even it could not understand. It recognizes its masters, yet remains erratic and disobedient. Days become weeks, and every waking moment is an extended segment of pain. It does not dream, and perhaps that is for the better. The emptiness of sleep is its only release from the agony and confusion. It does not know why it feels the need to rebel, but there is some purpose affixed in its heart that it cannot ignore. As time goes on, the monster becomes tamer to handle, but it remains the most temperamental of its flock. Burn scars litter its body from a previous incident, and its master seems uncomfortable at the sight of them. When the beast is called upon to eliminate trespassers, something in its stomach alights, and its chest feels tight. Its master tries to forcibly chain it to her commands, yet the untamed rages on. The Telethia is fighting something, but it cannot tell what. Blood curdles in its veins, and the pain only worsens. Its master shrieks in fear, and scrambles away from her assailants, while the Telethia coughs weakly on the floor. The pain that persisted ever since it awakened that day began to fade with its masters orders. Tears fall upon its broken body, and the Telethia gives one last spasm, before going still.

When Kallian returns to himself, he is greeted by Melia, who kneels before him. Memories return to him, and he knows his beloved sister has released him from his torment. He smiles one last time, and gives her a final embrace. As feathers fall, she weeps, weeps for all the times she couldn't cry. The Nopon presses into her side, and the Homs hold her tight. Kallian feels sorrow, and although he had many long years with her, he cannot help yearning for more. The man feels tears well up in his eyes, and wails back to the girl who cannot hear. The Mechon takes Melia's hand, and wipes her tears with the other. The rest fall in behind her, but they look forward. Melia finally too, turns away, and departs with them. Kallian watches, and his brotherly instinct instructs him to follow, to at least watch over the fledgling forced from the nest, but a hand reaches his shoulder. Father simply nods at him, and no words need to be spoken. She can fly on her own now, even if it seems too soon for her to even try. Kallian wordlessly follows, looking back one last time to the world he knew, before finally letting her go. All this time he had thought Melia wasn't ready to go out on her own, but now the prince realizes, perhaps it was him that wasn't ready to go. She has grown far stronger than he could have predicted, and stronger than he ever did. Peace spreads through his soul, and finally he lets go.

_Goodbye Melia._

**Author's Note:**

> i love bird


End file.
